Neuromuscular diseases represent a heterogeneous group of disorders of muscle, peripheral nerve and the neuromuscular junction. While there has been much enthusiasm in the past few years about therapeutic success in experimental models, many human neuromuscular diseases are still incurable and, to a large extent, only marginally treatable. There is a desperate need to understand the basic biology of muscle and nerve, and successfully treat neuromuscular diseases. This application seeks NIH funding to support the 18th International Congress of the World Muscle Society (WMS 2013) which will be held October 1-6, 2013 at the Asilomar Conference Grounds in California. This conference will bring together established and new researchers, trainees and junior faculty, and clinicians working in the neuromuscular field for state-of-the-art discussions on timely selected topics related to neuromuscular disease, and to learn of new developments across the neuromuscular field including potential new therapeutics. This is an international Congress and the only annual meeting on this topic that brings together investigators and clinicians from around the world. Neuromuscular disease is a rapidly expanding field and the annual meetings of the WMS promote dissemination of important new information. The themes for WMS 2013: Myomatrix in Health and Disease, Immunity and Muscle Disease, and Advances in Therapy for Neuromuscular Diseases were chosen based on importance and timeliness of the topic. Keynote speakers for each theme will be chosen from top researchers in the respective fields. Platform and poster sessions will focus on topics associated with the specific themes.